Just so I'm not sued by idiots, all star fox characters and merchandise belong to Nintendo, even the characters who never appeared in the games.
Old Feelings and New Beginnings
Chapter 1: Bittersweet Reunion
Krystal watched Corneria approaching through the front screen of her shuttle, she had left both the flight suit and the modified Wolfen she had piloted as part of the Star Wolf team back with them; once again she had changed her life because of a relationship.
It went back to her leaving Fox for Panther two years ago, she remembered exactly what she had said to him the day she left
'I'm sorry, Fox! I can't do this anymore. I'm going back to be with Panther and the rest of Star Wolf.'
She knew she had hurt him severely when she had told him that but it was the truth, Fox had kicked her off the team for her safety, something which had broken her heart, and she couldn't deny that in her time away from him, her feelings for him had waned considerably, even more so after she had met up with Star Wolf and Panther had comforted her. For the last two years since that day she had been with Star Wolf and had been seeing Panther, their relation ship never progressed any farther than the occasional date or evening meal. At first, Krystal assumed this was because Panther was busy, as she, Wolf, and Leon were with missions and other things such as ship and fighter maintenance. About one month ago she began to get suspicious when one night where she knew there was nothing planned for any of them and he still wasn't around, he returned later in the evening and had a late meal with her but she still questioned where he had been earlier. He had replied by saying.
"I was just some minor business in the city, nothing to worry your lovely azure head about." She did not ask the question again but two weeks ago, which was also two weeks after that event, she had seen him leaving the base they made their residence in on the industrial planet Eladard, once again, on a night where they had nothing planned for any of them. She had secretly followed him to a restaurant in the city where she had discovered him eating dinner with a feline woman. She had not been too concerned at first as she assumed she might be a family member, however distant, but at the end of the rendezvous she had seen them part with a passionate kiss and the promise to meet her again.
Krystal had then made it back to the base ahead of Panther and stopped him at the door, questioning him on his return. She confronted him about his date with the young feline, he had responded by saying, while holding a red rose in his right hand.
"Ah but there are so many charming women in this galaxy, how can deny any of them the Charm of Panther Caruso, surely you understand, fair Krystal." The blue vixen could do nothing but stare as Panther planted a kiss on her lips and moved pass her into the house. She stood still for almost a minute before she went back into the base. She sat down on the couch and thought things over; she had just realised that not only was Panther a ladies man he was, in her opinion, the worst kind of player, one who not only dated multiple women but could not stand to lose any of them and so kept it a secret unless they didn't mind. With all that on her mind she decided to sleep on the couch that night.
The next morning she woke up and ate breakfast in the kitchen. The first one awake after her was Wolf; he had come down just putting on the cybernetic attachment over his damage left eye, which allowed him to see through it. When he saw Krystal's disappointed face over the cereal she was eating he sat down across form her.
"So Krystal, what's eating you?" he asked. Though he never showed it in the field, he did care about his team-mates, showing sympathy was just hard for him. The cerulean fox cracked a smiled then sighed.
"Nothing, Wolf, it's just Panther."
"What about Panther?" Wolf inquired.
"He's such a jerk, that player doesn't even love me enough to just stick with me." Krystal seemed on the verge of tears.
"I'm not so sure he doesn't love you, but I always suspected he was doing something like this." Wolf replied. Krystal blinked.
"Then why didn't you ask him?"
"First, it was none of my business and it wasn't interfering with our mission, secondly I wasn't actually sure and I didn't want to run the risk of him leaving. So now that you know, what are you going to do Krys?" The blue vixen sighed.
"I don't know, but one thing's for sure I'm not staying here, not with that jackass Panther as a member of this team."
"So you're going to leave, fine just watch yourself out there." Krystal gaped.
"You're letting me go without a word of protest, why?"
"Because," Wolf said, leaning back in his chair, "If I were in your shoes I wouldn't want to stay here either, beside if I forced you to stay I wouldn't be a very good team leader. More to the point where will you go?"
"I don't know," Krystal rested her head in her hands on the table, "I don't know many people in this system beside your team and…Fox…" her voice trailed off.
"Then why not go back to him, he's probably been an emotional wreck for these last two years." Krystal gave wolf an odd look, as she sat back in her chair.
"Never thought you'd suggest that, I though you hated Fox's guts."
"I do, but after all this time I feel sorry for him and I kind of respect him, like his father. Of course if you ever told him that I would have to kill you," the wolf ended his line with a smirk.
"I guess that makes sense," Krystal replied, "But no matter where I go I'm only taking the things I came with, you can keep the fighter, flight suit, and those gifts Panther gave me." Krystal got up and left for her room. When she got to her room she took a suitcase from the closet and began packing her original belongings into it; among them were her staff and, after deciding she should take it back with her, the blue catsuit she had worn while she had flown with the StarFox Team.
When she got downstairs, Wolf passed her a credit disk saying.
"Use this to by a shuttle, if you're going to Corneria. The money won't be enough for a fast one and you'll need to stop on the way for food but it will give you some time to think about your decision, fox would be 31 now so think about if you really want to start a relationship again. Also I'll try to make sure that you can land on the planet without being stopped by the military." Krystal thanked him and left.
When she got to the city, having left the small bike she had ridden for anyone who could get it, she purchased a slow but sturdy shuttle and began her journey.
Now, two weeks later she had finally arrived at Corneria. This presented another problem, what if Fox wasn't on the planet, she didn't know what had happened in these last two years but all she knew that this was the last place that Fox had probably been and that it was the only planet he ever really stopped on for thing outside of business.
As Krystal approached the planet, she received a transmission from the planet security network.
"Unidentified T-class shuttle, state your name and business." Krystal sighed and responded.
"I am Krystal and I am here looking for an old friend, I don't want any trouble."
"Krystal, former member of Star Wolf…" she waited at the voice mulled over what she said, "You are cleared to proceed to the shuttle landing centre in Corneria City sector D, stay out of trouble." After the transmission ended Krystal sighed in relief; she'd expected to receive trouble from the authorities for being a member of Star Wolf but apparently this was Wolf at work. He must have informed them of her decision to leave the team, this gave her pause to think about how Leon was reacting to her departure, she didn't want to think about Panther.
After the re-entry she brought her shuttle down easily in the designated zone, she took her belongings and searched for a hotel to stay at finally settling on one called the Plaza near the centre of the city. When she checked in, she changed into something casual, a blue t-shirt and light blue jeans, and left her other items behind so she could search for Fox; it was just before 9:00am in Corneria City.
Three hours later at noon, it was becoming increasingly apparent that finding Fox was going to be next to impossible by just wandering and searching through the downtown area of Corneria City. Krystal stopped to eat lunch at an outdoor Café, where she and Fox used to eat frequently, at which she ordered a ham, cheese, and lettuce sandwich with mustard along with a bowl of vegetable soup and some orange juice. As she ate she reflected back to 3 years ago when she and Fox had been a couple. After the Aparoid invasion had ended and they had made it back to Corneria Fox had finally worked up the courage to tell her his feelings. For the next several months they were what amounted to a happy couple but Krystal could always sense that Fox's mind and heart were torn in some way that she couldn't figure out. Then about 8 months into their relationship, Fox had asked Krystal to step down form Star Fox for her own safety. This had broken her heart and she had run off and joined Star Wolf eventually succumbing to Panther's charms, until two weeks ago that is.
Now here she was again, the site of both her happiest moments in life, and the heart tearing moment that had changed it for what she now realised was the worse. She wondered for a moment if Fox was still alive. The thought that he might have committed suicide or been killed in a fight made her shutter mostly because if he had, she would have felt completely responsible for it.
"It's just over here," Krystal's ear's perked up; she recognized the voice but could hardly believe her luck.
"See I told you I would find it," It was Fox. Krystal got up and turned in the direction his voice had come from. When she saw Fox McCloud, alive and well, her heart lifted and she called out.
"Fox!" Startled, Fox turned to see Krystal standing next to a table at the Café.
"Krystal?" he said, his voice full of disbelief. Krystal started towards him when a female voice asked.
"Do you know her Fox?" Krystal's heart sank when she saw the women. She was a fennec vixen who looked about Fox's age with green eyes, and, like Fox, no real hair. What really made her heart sink was the wedding band on the fennec's left ring finger and the fact that she was obviously pregnant, and quite far into it by how her belly stuck out and the maternity clothes she was wearing. Fox gulped and said.
"Fara, this is Krystal. Krystal, this is my wife, Fara Phoenix-McCloud."
Krystal felt like she was going to cry.